


We may not be perfect, but we have each other

by undertalefa



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: BROTP prompts, Depressed Sans, Depression, F/F, M/M, More tags will be added for each chapter!, No Smut, Suicidal Thoughts, otp prompts
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-11
Updated: 2018-02-05
Packaged: 2018-10-30 19:32:51
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 7,638
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10883469
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/undertalefa/pseuds/undertalefa
Summary: Sans and Grillby, through SAVES and RESETS, through fun times and bad times, through childhood to old age.A series of OTP or BROTP prompts, focusing on Sans and Grillby, and the occasional Alphys and Undyne. Of course with a healthy dose of Papyrus sprinkled throughout.





	1. Middle School

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! Welcome to anyone new to my works! And welcome back to anyone coming from Permanent Smile!
> 
> If you haven't read that, it's my first fic, a story of how Sans gets over the trauma of his past once monsters reach the surface.
> 
> BUT! You probably didn't come here for that story, so welcome to "We may not be perfect, but we have each other". It's not related to my other fic at all.
> 
> Now that we've been introduced, here's a quick little synopsis of what this story is gonna be about. Mostly Grillby and Sans OTP prompts, with some Alphys and Undyne. Papyrus will come in for some BROTP prompts as well.
> 
> Feel free to suggest things! (and by that i mean prompts, not ships. Sansby and Alphyne are the only things i'm going to be including. probably) 
> 
> That being said, let's get into the first chapter! 
> 
> (I'm going to try and update this once a week, but no promises. Permanent Smile isn't completed yet, so ill try my hardest to make something good every week.)

Imagine your OTP in middle school. One is a very depressed kid, the other a very outgoing one. They get to talking somehow, and it turns out the outgoing one had tried to commit suicide the week before. How they both react is up to you.

_________________________________________________

 

The lunch room is always bustling with activity. So many groups of people congregated at what seems like millions, and millions and lunch tables. And it’s surprising that out of all these kids, and all these tables, one person sits alone. 

So of course, when Sans sees this kid , who happens to be a fire elemental, he goes over to them.

“heya, i’m sans.” He starts, offering a hand to the young flame, “can i sit here with you?”

The elemental looks up, surprised at finding one of the most popular kids in eighth grade right next to him.

“Y-yeah, sure! I’m Grillby by the way!” He stutters out, almost immediately regretting his over exaggerated enthusiasm. 

In response, Sans only gives a light chuckle and sits down next to him, amused by Grillby’s antics. He seems like a nice enough kid, and it’s a real shame nobody was sitting with him. Grillby looks like he’s about to say something else, but is interrupted.

“Hey! Sans!” Another kid shouts from across the room, “Why are you sitting with that dweeb?”

Looking back at Grillby, who visibly deflates at the statement, Sans responds, “and you care, why?”

The kid who shouted, a smug looking bunny monster, makes his way over to the table. “Cause he’s like a total nerd! Why would you hang out with someone so lame? Come back to our table, we don’t have weirdos like him.” He says, looking pointedly at Grillby.

The fire elemental only shrinks in on himself, used to such names. So he’s expecting it when Sans stands up to leave. Expecting it, but it still hurts.

What he doesn’t expect is Sans’ response. “what?” 

“You heard me, come back to our table and ditch this loser.”

Sans can’t believe what he’s hearing right now. What is this kid saying? He doubts this bunny dude has even spoken to Grillby once. Let alone got to know him. 

“excuse me?” He responds back snarkily, “why do you think i would want to back to ‘our’ table if it has people like you? and another thing, ‘our’ table? i don’t remember inviting a douche like you to ‘our’ table. so before you go and say things like that about people you don’t even know, fucking think about why you’re doing it in the first place. understand, asshole?”

Now, Sans may pride himself the slightest bit on his high status in school, especially when it comes to talking down guys like this monster. So it’s satisfying to see when the bunny just tries to shrug it off nonchalantly, leaving with only a ‘whatever’.

Sans sits back down after taking a deep breath. “sorry ‘bout him, he’s a real asshat. some people in the world just are…”

A silence hangs for a short time before Grillby breaks it. “Why?” he says, tone somber, “Why did you just defend me? It doesn’t make sense! He only talked true things about me!”

“that’s not true! you shouldn’t just believe what other people say about you.”

Somewhere in Sans’ mind, a voice whispers ‘hypocrite’, but he decides to ignore that for now.

“But… but I…” A glare from Sans stops Grillby from continuing.

“hey, he has no right to treat you like that.” Sans says genuinely. 

Grillby is extremely taken aback by Sans’ kindness, to say the least. Here’s like, the most popular kid in school, defending Grillby. He just doesn’t understand why.

“so, uh, hey… wanna hang out after school or something? i know we like just met, but you seem pretty cool.” Sans starts sheepishly, “ya don’t have to, i mean i get it if you don’t wanna-”

“Really?!” Grillby outbursts suddenly, then takes a second to tone himself down. “I mean, yeah that would be cool.”

Sans only chuckles, amused. “so you wanna come over my house after school? my dad’s not gonna be home, and the house is walking distance, so we could walk from here. 

Grillby agrees wholeheartedly again, and not soon after the bell rings, signaling the end of lunch.

Grillby is actually amazed at what just happened, as he allows it to sink into his brain. Sans. The Sans. Just asked him to hang out! He can't wait for the end of school! Which, unfortunately, is after five more periods of hell. He just has to lunch the earliest period possible, doesn't he? Oh well, at least he has something to look forward to. 

Sans is excited, too. Grillby actually seemed like a nice guy, and it seems like he'll be fun to hang out with. If his dad’s not home. Which he shouldn't be, but that still makes Sans nervous.

And so the day goes on, period by period, agonizingly slowly. But it eventually reaches the end, as all things do, and Sans and Grillby meet each other outside as the final bell rings.

“hey!” Sans waves Grillby over, “my house is this way.” He says, pointing to a place south of where they're standing.

“You still want to have me over?” Grillby asks nervously, still afraid that this is too good to be true.

“of course! dude, that'd be pretty shitty of me to just cancel now.”

Grillby just responds by laughing nervously and starting to walk with Sans. 

“it's not far, literally like five minutes from here.”

“And your parents aren't home?” Grillby asks curiously.

“something like that.” Sans grumbles.

It seems like a touchy subject, and Grillby opts to leave it alone, not wanting to upset Sans. So they walk to Sans’ house in relative silence, and it's not long before they come across it.

“Wow you really weren't lying! That was exactly five minutes!”

“course not.”

Their house is in Hotlands, actually. Rather close to the site where they're building the CORE. Surprisingly close. Usually only important people helping to build the CORE live near it.

“Hey, does one of your parents work on the CORE?” Grillby asks innocently as they walk into the house.

Sans doesn't answer him, staying quiet. He’s not sure if he didn't hear him, or he just doesn't want to respond. Probably the latter judging by his reaction to mentioning his dad earlier, so Grillby decides not to repeat the question.

“dad?” Sans calls out, sounding almost scared.

There's no answer. Thank god.

“so we could go into my room if ya would like? i got some video games up there and stuff.” Sans says, realizing he didn't really have a plan for when Grillby came over.

Oh well. He’ll just wing it.

“Yeah, that sounds fun!” Grillby says, once again cursing himself for being so excited.

So they both walk upstairs into Sans’ room, Grillby admiring how clean everything looks. And expensive. His parents must have a lot of money. Or just his dad, since he hasn’t heard Sans mention another person yet.

They both sit on the bed, and Grillby notices another one, just across from Sans’. “Hey, do you have a sibling?”

It’s amazing how much Sans’ face lights up at the mention of Papyrus. “oh yeah, my brother Papyrus, he’s real great. he’s in elementary school, so his classes don’t get out until later. that reminds me… you don’t mind coming with me to pick him up? his school ends at 3:00.” Wow, way to go Sans, force your guest to come pick up your brother with you.

Grillby, however, is not bothered the slightest by this. “Oh, I’d love to meet him! Of course I’ll come with you.”

“thanks, it means a lot.” Sans pauses, going to dig in a bucket of video game disk cases, “how bout this one?” He holds up a game Grillby hasn’t seen before.

“Oh yeah! I’m the master at that game!”

“if ya say so…” Sans responds, popping the disk out and putting it in the game consol.

They get to playing, and Grillby has no idea what’s going on. There’s… puzzles? And these things you can shoot on the wall to get from place to place. Sans seems to know what he’s doing at least, and Grillby just tries to follow along.

“you’ve never played this game before in your life.” Sans remarks suddenly, as a statement, not a question.

Grillby’s lack of response only confirms his suspicions. 

Sans only laughs, “i mean, it’s fine! you could have just told me though.”

“Sorry…” Grillby says seriously, caving in on himself, “I just… I thought you would think I was “un-cool”. I don’t know, it was stupid. Sorry.”

“no, no, it's okay. i wouldn’t think you weren’t cool. why would you say that?” Sans asks, mood saddened by Grillby’s reasoning. 

“Well, in case you couldn’t tell, nobody likes me. I’m a loser! A weirdo! You’re the first person to ever invite me over, and it’s probably because of pity!” Grillby almost shouts.

He honestly has no idea where that came from, and why he just shouted it at Sans. He’s only known him for the day, and here he is, spewing his problems on him. “I should just leave.” 

Grillby starts standing up before Sans responds. “no, wait. please.” 

Grillby only turns to look at Sans, allowing him to respond. “this wasn’t because of pity, or whatever. i like you. you seem like a nice person, and i just wanted to hang out with you. i guess it was to good to be true…” He trails off.

“i dunno. you can go if you really want to, i just… everyone kinda sucks, ya know? specially that kid today. it wasn’t right what he said. and i don’t know how many times you’ve been told that, how many mean things people said to you. but for what it’s worth, i can say that none of those things are true.”

Grillby, without a word, goes back and sits next to Sans on the bed. They sit in silence for a long time, before Grillby finally sighs, breaking it. “Sometimes, don’t you just wish you could… disappear? Like, you wouldn’t have to deal with any problems anymore.” Grillby pauses for a second. “Nevermind, you probably don’t get it. No one ever does…” He says sadly, “Sorry for bringing that up.”

“i…” Grillby looks over at Sans, and he seems like he’s struggling to say something. “i get it… but if i tell you this, please promise not to tell anyone else. especially not my brother.”

“I promise.” Grillby agrees.

“last week, last friday, i wasn’t… in the best place of mind. i was just hanging out in the lava by hotlands, dangling my feet over the edge, and… i… i just thought…” He starts visibly shaking, and clasps his hands together to try and keep them still. “then some lady came by and grabbed me before i could jump… and… shit.” He huffs, frustrated.

“Wow.” Is all Grillby can say.

What can he say? The most popular kid in eighth grade, in the whole middle school, just told him of all people that he… he almost killed himself.

“i’m sorry, i probably shouldn’t have said anything.” Yeah, now Grillby knows how much of a fuck up he is.

“No, I’m… glad you told me. It’s better knowing you’re not alone, right? Well I’m here for you if you need it.”

Sans was right thinking Grillby was a good kid. He’s really something special.

“thanks.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh, middle school drama


	2. High School

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heyyyyy... remember when I said I would be updating once a week? Well I finished writing this early, and just couldn't wait to post it! Anyways, thank you all so much for the Kudos I received on the last chapter! It really means a lot to me when I see how much people like my work, it's sort of an inspiration to keep writing.
> 
> Anyways, i won't be rambling as long as i did in the first notes, so here's the next chapter!

Imagine Person A has an (emotionally/physically/verbally) abusive parent, but they can’t stand up to them. But when they introduce Person B to their parents, it’s not long before Person B has something to say.

_________________________________________________

 

Grillby picks his phone up as it buzzes, eagerly awaiting Sans’ response.

 

_ Sans<3:  _

_ nah, you prob shouldn’t come over today. my dad’s not in a good mood right now. _

 

That’s the third time this week Sans has used that excuse, and Grillby is honestly getting fed up. He sighs as he places his phone back down on his bedside table. Why can’t Sans just have him over when his dad’s home? Grillby’s never even met his dad! He can’t be  _ that _ bad, especially not all the time. Does Sans just not want to spend time with him? He knew it was too good to be true…

No. He refuses to accept that. Sans probably has a good reason. He just… He just wishes he would tell him what's going on.

The flame makes up his mind, and decides to go to Sans house anyways. Even though Sans told him not to. But he just wants to see if he's okay. And  _ maybe _ also see if Sans has been purposely ignoring him as well.

So Grillby sets off, leaving his house with only a quick goodbye to his mom. His house isn't far actually, a good ten minutes from his, walking distance. Not that anything is far when you're trapped in a underground cave.

Grillby walks quickly, determined to see what's up with his friend. The more he thinks about, the stranger it gets. Why  _ does _ Sans not like his father? It always seems like he's afraid of him or something. Maybe he's not supposed to hang out with kids at school…? No, that wouldn't make sense, right?

His thoughts are interrupted as Grillby passes the CORE, almost completely built. It's only been a few years, five to be exact, since they started the production, and it's surprising they're managing to put it together this fast. Especially with the limited resources underground.

It's really amazing, that the brilliant Royal Scientist managed to come up with an idea as great as this.

Soon after passing the CORE, Grillby reaches Sans’ house, and he's still uncertain why it's so close. He can only assume that someone in Sans’ family is working on it. But why wouldn't he tell Grillby? Or anyone for that matter? Working on the CORE is one of the highest honors, considering you get to work with the Royal Scientist, Dr. W.D. Gaster himself.

He gathers his thoughts again, and goes to knock on the door, but is interrupted by shouting coming from inside the house. He can't make out who it is, or what they're saying, but the voice definitely doesn't belong to Sans, and sounds angry. Maybe he shouldn't have come… No. He has to find out what's going on.

His fiery fist knocks on the door a few times, causing the shouting to seize. The door is suddenly flung open, almost hitting Grillby in the face.

“Who is this?” A voice almost growls, and Grillby has to look up to see the tall figure standing in the doorway.

Oh.  _ Oh _ . Sans’ father doesn't  _ work _ for Dr. W.D. Gaster, he  _ is _ Dr. W.D. Gaster.

“Hello?” The doctor snaps impatiently.

“Uh- I, uh…” Grillby doesn’t know what to say. “Is Sans home?” He diverts his gaze from the scientist, and looks into the house.

Sans is there, covering one of his eyes with his hands, looking at Grillby with a pleading expression.

Would saying he came to see Sans as a friend not be allowed? He quickly covers his question with a lie. “We have a project! To work on. And I just wanted to see if he was busy right now.” Grillby blurts out.

He looks back up at Dr. W.D. Gaster, who happens to be giving him a cold look, but decides to agree anyway. “Sure.” He says sharply, “Just give me a minute…” He trails off, turning back inside the house.

And unfortunately, or maybe fortunately, even though the scientist’s back is turned, and he’s a good ways into the house, Grillby can still hear exactly what he says to Sans.

“Never do that again. You’re worthless to me.” He says menacingly, looking like he wanted to hit Sans again, but deciding against it.

Grillby is sickened by the words he just heard as the doctor marches away to god knows where.  _ This  _ is why Sans didn’t want him to come over.

Speaking of Sans, he’s still crumpled in a ball on the floor, and Grillby rushes over to him. “Are you okay?” He asks, mentally cursing himself for the stupid question. Of course he’s not okay!

“yeah, m’fine.” Sans barely managed to get out.

He  _ is _ fine, just got the wind knocked out of him. And maybe the bone under his eye got cracked a little, but it’s not a lie. He’s fine, it’s nothing out of the ordinary.

He takes his hand away from his eye socket to help himself up. And he just hates that Grillby gasps when he sees the damage done. “Are you okay?!” He asks again, “That looks like it hurts…”

“nah, it doesn’t” he lies, “can we just… go up to my room.” He almost begs the flame.

“Okay…” Grillby agrees hesitantly.

Why did Grillby have to come over? He shouldn’t have seen that. He looks concerned, probably feels bad for Sans, but he shouldn’t. He shouldn’t feel bad, because he deserved it.

But knowing Grillby, which Sans definitely does, he won’t let this go easily. And he is correct in that assumption, as almost as soon as they reach the room, and Sans sits on his bed, Grillby starts speaking again. “That’s not okay.”

“what?”

“What he did to you! He  _ did _ do that to you, right?”

And this was the chance Sans was waiting for. The opportunity to say ‘nah, i just fell’ or ‘i just tripped on a rock’. But he… he can’t bring himself to say it. He wants to, he wants to so bad just lie and say it wasn’t his  _ father _ , that he was just clumsy, or, or....

He can’t. “yeah…”

“You have to tell someone. This isn’t okay! Does anyone know?” Grillby spits out, trying to get ahold of his thoughts.

He just can’t understand how… how Sans has been dealing with this! It doesn’t seem like such a new occurrence either. He doesn’t understand why Sans never told him.

“well, my brother. sort of.” Sans answers.

And he doesn’t like that his brother knows. Of course, he doesn’t know the full extent, Sans would be even more useless if that was the case. But he knows enough. Enough that Sans hates himself for letting his own little, naive brother see him walk in after a shouting match with their dad, covered in cracks and a fair amount of dust. And there’s nothing he could do about that. Papyrus was bound to find out. But it still hurts knowing his brother knows that he keeps messing up enough to be punished.

“You have to tell someone. The Royal Guard, and adult, anyone!” Grillby begs, “I… I just don’t know what to do by myself…” He admits.

“can’t.” Sans replies easily, “who would believe that the Royal Scientist, Dr. W.D. Gaster himself!” He says, mockingly, “would ever turn out to be someone who does this.” Sans sighs. “and besides, it’s not like i didn’t deserve it.”

“How could you say that! There’s absolutely nothing you can do that warrants  _ this _ type of behaviour!”

“just. drop it.” Sans says quietly, but Grillby continues anyway.

“This isn’t right! You have to tell someone! Anyone! Please… There’s no way in hell that i’m letting this continue happening.”

He should, Sans deserves it. “stop.”

Grillby ignores him again. “This isn’t okay!” He says again, at a loss for words now, “How can you say you’re fine when this is happening?!”

“because i am!” Sans shouts,  _ actually _ shouts. “i’m fine! i deserve it! and even if i didn’t, who would care! no one!” He laughs, almost maniacally, “because nobody gives a crap if a small, worthless child is being abused, if they still have the Royal Scientist building the CORE for everyone!” He pauses, if only to take a breath, “but it’s fine! i’m fine! i make a mistake, i get punished. that’s how it works for me. not Papyrus, i make sure of that, but for me, that’s life. actions have consequences! and i understand that. there’s nothing i could do anyways…” He gives a small, sad chuckle, so hollow and lifeless.

Grillby just sits there in shock for a few seconds, so unused to seeing Sans like this. Sans, the popular kid, always calm, cool, collected. Never raising his voice, but somehow always managing to be heard.

And looking at him now, almost giving up on life because of the man he dares call father, being abused and believing it’s okay… It’s not. And Grillby can’t just stand by and watch this happen.

But… Sans has a point, unfortunately. Who  _ would _ believe a kid saying that the prestigious Royal Scientist is actually a psychopath who beats his kids?

But for now, he has to make sure Sans is okay. So the elemental goes and sits down next to Sans on the bed without saying a word, allowing the skeleton to lean into him. And to Grillby’s surprise, he sees a small tear drip down Sans’ face, just a single tear, but it hurts all the same. Hurts him right down to his soul, seeing Sans like this. And maybe he can’t do much, he is still a kid after all, but he can be there for Sans when he needs it. And he needs it right now.

“It’ll be okay.” He whispers. “Maybe not right now, but eventually.”


	3. Gyftmas Celebration

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i have no idea what my update schedule is anymore for this honestly
> 
> anyways! that said! this chapter is a suggestion from VanillaPine which i tried to keep to their suggestion, but wow, i might have changed it a bit. anyways, hope you enjoy this chapter.

Person A and Person B go on a date. And Person C comes with them.

_________________________________________________

This is nice, Sans thinks, trying to ignore the pain that's now a dull aching across his ribs. He holds Papyrus’ hand as they walk, Grillby next to him.

“I’M GLAD YOU'RE GETTING OUT OF THE HOUSE SANS,” Papyrus starts, “THIS ‘GYFTMAS FESTIVAL’ SEEMS SUPER COOL! EVEN IF I DON’T KNOW WHAT IT IS.” He says, bouncing up and down enthusiastically.

“i told you paps,” Sans says, feigning annoyance, “it's just a big celebration that snowdin throws for gyftmas.”

“I’ve been to it before, and it’s really nice. I think Snowdin would really be a nice place to live.”

“aren't you fire though…?” Sans asks confused.

“Yeah.” Grillby responds plainly.

“and wouldn't that, i don't know, not be a good idea?”

“Sans, just because i'm made of fire, doesn't mean I can't be by snow. I just have to wear boots.” The flame responds, gesturing to his dark green boots he's currently wearing to prove his point.

“welp. guess i can't argue with that.”

They keep walking towards Snowdin, with only a few more questions from Papyrus, until the finally reach the small town. As soon as they reach a populated area, Papyrus takes off to play with a clump of kids in the center of town. Normally, Sans would be worried, and he still is, but Snowdin’s supposedly the nicest and safest place underground. And it's not like he can't intervene if things don't go well.

Grillby, on the other hand, is just enjoying hanging out with Sans. It's something that's been hard to do recently because Sans’ father has really been cracking down on him. And not in a friendly, non-violent way. So it's good to have a day all to themselves for once.

“you wanna get something to eat?” Sans suggests, pointing to a small cafe, almost right in the center of the town.

“Really? We just got here! But if you're hungry I guess we could go…” Grillby says, playfully sarcastic.

They approach the restaurant, where a small, old bunny lady is standing outside. She has a pair of square glasses on her face, and is wearing a red sundress, not very weather appropriate. But hey, maybe the bunnies in Snowdin are used to the cold?

Anyways, Grillby takes it upon himself to order, asking for a table for two. The bunny lady, Jannette they learn, gives them a knowing look, which confuses the pair. However, they continue on and get seated at a nice table inside the restaurant, but close to a window thankfully, so Sans still has a view of Papyrus.

“so…”, Sans begins, not really sure what to talk about.

Grillby takes it into his own hands, unfortunately with an uncomfortable topic for Sans, “Are you okay? It seems like he's been getting worse recently…”

Sans lowers his head, “i'm fine,” He says, looking down, “it's not been getting worse.” He finishes, albeit not convincingly.

Grillby looks at him skeptically, “Are you sure? Did he do anything this morning before we left?”

“no.” Sans lies.

The flame only sighs in response, which Sans then suspects that Grillby might know he's lying. But luckily, he doesn't seem like he's going to push the subject, at least right now, so he tries to change the topic. He looks up from the ground, “so what are ya gonna get?”?”

“What?”

“to eat?”

“Oh.” Grillby replies, looking at the menu on the table quickly, “I don’t know, I guess a burger? How about you?”

“that sounds good, i think i’ll get the same.”

“What was that I heard?” Jannette comes over to their table, “Two burgers?”

“Yes, please.” Grillby responds.

“Okay, i’ll be right back!” She says cheerily.

Once Jannette leaves, Sans takes the time to look out the window and check on Papyrus. Who’s… not there? Oh no. What happened? Is he okay? Sans should probably leave to find him. He should-

“Are you okay?” Grillby says, interrupting Sans’ train of thought.

“s-sorry, i couldn’t find Papyrus outside.” Sans replies, cursing himself for not being able to keep his voice even.

“Don’t worry, I saw him walk over to the restaurant. In fact, I think I see him coming in now.” Grillby says, pointing to the front where Sans can see Papyrus talking with Jannette.

Oh. He was worried over nothing. Kind of pathetic of him.

Shortly after, Papyrus comes over to their table.

“SO HOW’S YOUR DATE GOING?”

If Sans was drinking something, he would have just spit it out. “w-what?” He says, flustered.

“YOU ARE ON A DATE, RIGHT? THIS IS WHAT MY DATING MANUAL SAID PEOPLE ON A DATE WOULD LOOK LIKE.”

“okay, first off: no. we are not on a date.” Sans looks over at Grillby who has his head in his hands. “second: where did you get a dating manual from???”

“BUT YOU SAID YOU LIKED HIM, DIDN’T YOU?” Sans turns his head to stare vehemently at the floor, “SO IF YOU ARE NOT DATING, THIS WOULD BE THE PERFECT WAY TO START.”

Oh god, why did Sans ever tell Papyrus he like liked Grillby? He doesn’t even know if he’s _into_ men, oh no, he’s fucked up, he’s fucked up so bad.

“Papyrus…” Sans manages to hiss out.

“Oh my god!” Grillby laughs, and Sans prepares himself for the worst.

This is where Grillby tells him that they can’t be friends anymore, why would Sans think he’s _gay_? Wow he’s super pathetic. He’s so weird and useless and worthless and-

“I had no idea you felt the same way!”

Sans looks up to face Grillby. “what?”

“Well, Papyrus said you liked me, right?” It’s Grillby’s turn to look embarrassed, “And I like you too. Like, like like you.” He pauses for a moment. “You do like me, right?”

“yeah…”

“OF COURSE!” Papyrus starts enthusiastically, “I KNEW YOU BOTH WERE GOOD FOR EACH OTHER! I WILL RETURN TO OUTSIDE SO YOU BOTH CAN ENJOY YOUR FIRST DATE! NYEH HEH HEH!”

Papyrus bounds off, going back outside, while both Sans and Grillby sit there in silence.

Grillby is the first one to break the silence, “You can say you don't like me, if you want.” He says sadly.

Sans is taken aback by that. “no, no! i didn't mean to come off like- ugh” He sighs, face palming. “wow i'm just a mess. yeah, i do like you. there's no reason for you to like me though.”

“Don't say that!” Grillby responds, not happy and saddened by Sans’ reply, “There's so much to like about you! You're kind, caring, funny, sweet, and, uh…” He stops when he notices Sans staring at him.

“you really think that?” He asks quietly.

“Of course!” Grillby says, trying to cover up his embarrassment at his sudden outburst of compliments.

“wow, you're great. you're really great.” Sans says, both to himself and Grillby.

Said flame is a bit taken aback by the small compliment.

“do you… do you really want this to be a date? cause if you don't wanna that's fine with me honestly, i don't-”

Grillby cuts him off before he can continue. “No, I do. If you're okay with it?”

“yeah. it's...nice.” Sans says, turning to look out the window where Papyrus is.

The town is full of cheer, children running about, trees being decorated. Everything just looks so happy.

Papyrus looks at Sans and gives him a not so subtle wink from outside.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> jannette you dumb bitch, you didn't even ask how they wanted their burgers cooked smh


	4. It's either bed time, or you're having a bad time

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ahhhhh this very short chapter took entirely too long to write
> 
> ughhh, i'll try to write better and faster soon, just gotta deal with the stress of exams first

Imagine Person A trying to convince Person B, who hasn't slept for 24 hours, to go to bed.

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“Sans, you need to sleep.” Grillby demanded, and not unfairly.

The skeleton had bags under his eyes (and Grillby wondered how that's even possible, him being a skeleton and all) and he looked on the verge of passing out any minute.

“no, no, it's fine.” He mumbled, turning back to his work, “how'd ya even get into the lab?”

“Sans.” Grillby says, warningly.

“just needa finish this… this thing. yeah.” He mutters tiredly. 

“Sans…” 

“what, grillbz, i’m tryin to get work done!” Sans starts, irritated from his current situation. “just leave me alone, i need to finish this. i need to.” He pauses to take a breath, “how’d ya even get in the lab anyways? you’re not supposed ta be in here.”

Grillby sighs. “Nevermind that, you need to leave. You can’t keep doing this, staying up all night, finishing your dad’s projects.” He says, bitterly mentioning Sans’ dad.

And it’s sad to watch. It’s sad to watch Sans wearing himself out so much for someone who doesn’t even care about him. It’s sad, and Grillby decides he has to do something about it. Sans can’t keep doing this.

“grillby. it’s fine. just go.”

“How long have you been up?”

“that doesn’t matter. i just gotta-”

Grillby cuts him off, “How long have you been up?” He insists.

Sans sighs. “what day is it?”

“... Wednesday…”

“aw, shit.” Sans comments, but doesn’t elaborate any further. 

“Sans…” Grillby says sweetly, trying to coax the answer out of him.

Sans sits for a moment longer in silence before responding. “... three days.” He says quietly, quickly speaking again before Grillby says something, “more like two and a half honestly. don’t worry.” He yawns, “just… just gotta finish… yeah.” He turns back to his work. 

Why did Grillby even bother coming here? He knows Sans’ dad will beat the crap out of him if he doesn’t finish this. He was told to finish these equations, told to finish this work. Absolutely no excuses, the work has to be done, to quote his dad. 

That’s not to say he isn’t tired though, he certainly is. Sans blinks blearily at the computer in front of him, finding it hard to focus on the words in front of him, and the task at hand. He flinches when a warm hand is placed on his shoulder. Grillby. Oh yeah, forgot he was here.

“Sans… Please…”

“i can't, grillbz, sorry.” Sans tries, but Grillby keeps insisting.

“Sans, you have to. This isn't good for you, this isn't okay!” The flame exclaims.

“i don't care if it isn't okay!” Sans growls, turning to face Grillby once again, “i'm not okay! this is just how it works for me!” He stands up suddenly, looking like he's about to push Grillby away.

However, both fortunately and unfortunately, a sudden wave of dizziness hits Sans as he stands up, causing him to sway on his feet. Grillby, of course, holds Sans, making sure he doesn't fall.

“leggo of me! i'm fine!” Sans says, trying to push away from Grillby.

That doesn't go as planned for him though, as he's too tired to muster up the strength to actually push the glam away from him. Sans sighs, resorting to the only other thing that might work. “please Grillbz…” He says softly, “i needa do this. please.”

And it hurts Grillby when he hears this, the voice so broken and sad, begging to do more, always more, the voice that belongs to someone who never takes a break, if only because of his abusive father. A voice that's owner is the kindest, most selfless person Grillby has ever known, and it kills him inside that he can't do anything to help Sans get rid of his dad. But this… This can't continue. He’ll make sure Sans will get a restful sleep, and won't get punished for something he needs to do. And he needs it, Grillby thinks, once again looking at the deep, dark circles and shadows underneath Sans’ eye sockets.

“No.”

“Grillby…” Sans tries, but Grillby stops him before he can even say anything else.

“I don't care what you say, you need to sleep. And you're going to.”

“but… dad…” The skeleton mumbles, somehow even quieter than before.

“Don't worry. I'll make sure he doesn't hurt you. I promise.”

Sans wants to retort, wants to say ‘there's no way in hell you can promise that’. But he's just… so tired. And there's no point in arguing, Sans thinks, noting the determined look on Grillby’s face. And he's too shot right now to even think of a good argument.

There's no way he's getting out of the unscathed. But hey, he'll take whatever punishment his dad dishes out to keep Grillby happy. And Sans going to sleep seems like something that will do just that.

So, with a sigh, Sans surrenders, slumping in on himself. 

“k.” He murmurs.

“Come on, let's get you to a bed.” Grillby says, taking ahold of Sans’ hand.


	5. Nightmare

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sooooo... it's been a while since i've updated this. i haven't dropped this! don't worry! basically a lot of things are happening right now, so sorry about the super short chapter. i'll try to start updating regularly, but i'm not sure i'll be able to, so bare with me!
> 
> (if you really want to know why my updates kinda suck, go to the recent chapters for my other fic, permanent smile. i explain everything in the notes!)

Imagine Person A frantically trying to wake up Person B while they're screaming at a nightmare.

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Grillby is worried about Sans. Not in the ‘oh you're my friend, just want to make sure you're doing good’, or even the ‘you're my boyfriend, so i need to make sure you're okay’ type of worry. This type of worry is something anyone would have if they knew Sans. Papyrus worries, and so does Grillby.

His father, on the other hand, does not.

And it's not like Sans and Papyrus’ father just doesn't care. He doesn't, but… he does things. Hits them, beats them, with Sans always taking the brunt of it. And so it causes worry.

Of course, Grillby has worried about Sans for a long time. Not as long as Papyrus has, but ever since he learned the truth about Sans’ dad. And it's not hard to see the truth. It's just hard to fix the truth.

But… It's gotten worse. The beatings, the strict instructions. Sans plays it off like it's just fine, ‘it's okay.’ to put it in his terms. But it's not okay. It's not okay when Sans limps into school because of how badly he was hurt. It's not ok when directly after school he has to report to the labs, because his father needs him for last touches on the CORE. It's not okay when Sans comes to Grillby’s house, whether Grillby dragged him there half-asleep, or he needs a place to stay for the night to avoid his dad. But it's reality, and reality is a hard pill to swallow. So here they are, Sans asleep on Grillby's bed, while the latter is up, pondering.

Thinking. Just thinking.

Thinking about any possible way he can help Sans. But when your father is the Royal Scientist, a needed position, it's hard to do anything to help.

Sans stirs next to him, shocking Grillby out of his thoughts. He comes up next to him, noticing the pained expression on Sans’ face, and the harsh breathes he's taking.

“no…” He mumbles, “please… stop.”

A nightmare. He should… wake Sans up. Yeah.

“no!” Sans screams, startling Grillby even more.

Sans rarely ever screams or shouts, and when he does it's never really that loud. But that scream… that was of pure terror. (What is he dreaming about?)

Not important. He needs to get Sans up. “Sans?” He says quietly, a half whisper.

That seems to have no effect though, so he speaks louder. “Sans? Wake up.”

Grillby reaches out to maybe shake him awake, but as soon as he touches Sans, the reaction is instantaneous. “stop!”

The flame takes a step back, frightened for a moment. “no no no no no No NO!” Sans screams.

Again, Grillby goes in to wake Sans up, warping his arms around the skeleton. Probably not the best idea, who knows what Sans might think it is, but in Grillby's current state of panic, it's the only one he has.

“Sans! It's me! Grillby! Please wake up!” He says, trying hard to keep the struggling skeleton between his arms.

Sans stops moving, probably as he begins to wake up. “g-grillby…?” He asks softly.

“Yeah, it's me. You were… having a nightmare. So I tried to wake you up.”

Sans just stares at the flame for a moment before responding. “thanks. and… sorry. sorry for freakin ya out.”

Grillby wants to say something, likes it's okay! It's not your fault you have these nightmares! Please, don't blame yourself, it's not your fault, it's not your fault! But instead, he just wraps his arms around Sans tighter, and Sans leans into his touch.

Sometimes actions speak louder than words.


	6. CRYteria for being a good brother

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ummmmm.... so i decided to write another one of these??? haha omg it's been a while. decided it was about time for a BROTP!
> 
> as always, thank you so much for the kudos and comments! really makes my day getting them!

Person A never cries… ever. Not even during Toy Story 3. Now imagine Person B wakes up in the middle of the night to find Person A sobbing on the bathroom floor.

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The Great Papyrus himself is the greatest at everything! That is… he thought so, but then he saw his brother’s smiles grower faker and faker each day, and he hasn’t been able to do a thing about it. Even inviting Grillby over didn’t seem to help! If anything, Sans looked more strained as soon as Grillby left.

Now, Papyrus isn’t stupid. He’s not the naive idiot his father thinks him to be. He knows Sans is hurting, both mentally and physically. He knows that Sans tries to hide it, the bruises and cracks in his bones from their father. But, call it ‘brother’s intuition’, Papyrus knows that Sans hides more than he lets on. And he also knows that Sans shares some of this information with Grillby, although not that much, but more than he shares with his own brother. But that’s okay! Papyrus knows Sans is only doing what he thinks is right, even if it causes him so much hurt.

He’s stuck at a crossroads. He wants to confront his brother, and ask him what’s wrong, even though he knows at least part of the answer already. But he also wants Sans to come to him of his own accord, as to not push him into anything.

Then again, as great as he is, he’s still a kid, and he doesn’t know what to do. So, he decides to sleep on it, already having stayed up later than he should have. But their dad wasn’t home anyways, and Sans was holed up in his room, so he stayed up for a little bit longer. Well… maybe a lot a bit. But that’s because he’s thinking of ways to try and help Sans!

He lets out a big yawn. Oh wow, he wonder’s how Sans ever stays up this late. Because he knows he stays up far later than this at times. Even though he’s told him many times in a kind lecture that that’s not healthy for him!

The younger skeleton has almost drifted asleep, when he is jolted awake by a muffled sound. It’s… hard to make out what it is? It almost seems… intentionally muffled? Like someone was trying to hide it… Is there a burglar in the house?! What should he do?! Should he wake Sans?

No! He is the Great Papyrus, and whoever this intruder is, they are not important enough to disturb his brother’s already sparse sleep. So, gathering his wits, he grabs a small flashlight from his bedside table, and takes one of his action figures that Sans got him from another table in the room. Not because he’s scared of course… but for extra protection!

So, he creeps out of the room, holding both the light and toy close to his chest. Surely the intruder is somewhere… His eyes scan the house, eventually finding a glint of light peeking from a side hallway. There! There’s where that criminal must be!

But… That’s near Sans’ room! The skeleton decides he better hurry quickly and confront this burglar before they do anything rash. He hastily peeks around the corner of the hallway, spotting where the light is coming from. The… bathroom? Maybe Sans just had to use the bathroom for something. Maybe he’s a little too jumpy from all that sugar he had before bed.

But if it is Sans, what made that strange sound? As if on cue, another sound emits from what Papyrus can now confirm is the bathroom. What is Sans doing? Is that even Sans? What’s going on? It almost sounds like someone… is hurt. He must help them!

He creeps his way towards the bathroom door which is slightly ajar, still nervous although whoever’s inside sounds like they’re in pain. He quietly switches the flashlight off, the luminescence peeking through the door enough to see by.

He’s not afraid! Of course not! What a preposterous accusation! There is absolutely no reason to be scared of the scary sounds produced by someone who may or may not be Sans in the middle of the night. Nope not at all.

His hands tremble as he moves his hand towards the door to push it open. The sounds have started becoming more frequent and louder, like the person making them doesn’t care anymore whether anyone hears or not. Papyrus’ last thought before his shaking hands push open the door with a squeak is that the sound reminds him of someone crying.

“p-p-papyrus…?”

Oh. It was someone crying. 

“SANS? WHAT’S WRONG?”

All his previous fear is abandoned, now knowing the source of the sound, but fear is replaced with worry.

“WHAT HAPPENED? WHY ARE YOU CRYING?”

His brother wipes his face on the sleeve of his sweatshirt, the sweatshirt that Papyrus has told him a thousand times to wash because it’s so dirty, and he smiles as response.

“i’m not crying, haha, just…” He searches for an excuse, and comes up with the lamest one possible that even Papyrus won’t believe, “got something in my eye.”

That poor explanation will not fool the younger skeleton, especially with the shakiness of his voice. “...SANS…” 

Said monster lets out a sigh of resignation. “...sorry. yeah, i… was cryin’.”

And something in Papyrus tells him not to ask ‘why?’, because he knows that whatever his brother says, it won’t ever be the truth. But, that’s fine, because Sans is allowed to keep things to himself, no matter how much it would help him to tell someone.

But since he knows Sans won’t respond to any of his questions, ‘why?’, ‘how?’, ‘was it dad?’, or ‘was it something worse?’, he has to do something else. 

Sans is staring at him now, an expression of sadness, combined with confusion, combined with guilt, and a whole flood of other emotions he knows his brother will never admit to. So, instead of saying anything, he kneels down to where Sans is on the floor, and pulls him into a tight hug.

“..haha.” He laughs, but it’s not really because of something funny. More so he has no way to process his emotions besides the only thing he knows how to do, laugh it off or switch subjects. And he can’t switch the subject now. So instead, he leans into Papyrus, grasping him tight, probably too tight to be comfortable, and he sobs into the back of his nightshirt. 

Papyrus was still a kid, but looking at both of them on the cold tile of the bathroom, you’d think he’s the older comforting the younger, not the other way around. Even though he’s the same height as Sans now, he holds a confidence the other skeleton doesn’t possess, giving him a sense of maturity.

The back of Papyrus shirt has become basically soaked by the time Sans pulls away. “... sorry. sorry.”

“SANS, THERE’S NO NEED TO BE SORRY!” Papyrus responds, flashing him a pure, genuine smile.

“nah,” He again wipes his face with his sleeve, and his next words come out shaky, “it’s not right, ya know? haha… i’m the older brother. m’supposed to be comforting y-you, not the other way around…”

“WHAT KIND OF BROTHER WOULD I BE IF I DIDN’T COMFORT YOU, WHEN YOU COMFORTED ME SO MANY TIMES?” The younger skeleton seems almost offended by the ‘accusation’. “HOW IS THAT FAIR? I JUST- I JUST WANTED TO HELP YOU FOR ONCE. BECAUSE YOU NEVER LET ME.”

The older stares back, not knowing what to say, but thankfully Papyrus keeps going, “SO THANK YOU! FOR ALLOWING ME TO COMFORT YOU! I CAN FINALLY FEEL LIKE I’VE FULFILLED PART OF MY ROLE AS BROTHER!”

He beams at his brother, and the other skeleton smiles back. A shaky smile, but a true one.

“b-bro. have i ever told you how great you are?”

“EVERYDAY.”

They hug once again.


End file.
